Did Sacramento Kings Speak to Virginia Governor About a Move?

The Maloofs aren’t saying much about a report from the Virginian-Pilot, which alleges that the Sacramento Kings spoke to Virginia’s Governor about moving the team to Virginia Beach. Per the Sac Bee: “Virginia Beach Mayor Will Sessoms said that a professional team is ‘very interested’ in a move to that city, but he declined to name the team. Sacramento Kings co-owner Joe Maloof simply said ‘no’ when asked whether the team had a recent meeting with the Virginia governor. Maloof offered no elaboration. A press secretary to Virginia governor Bob McDonnell declined comment. The Virginian-Pilot report rekindles talk from two months ago that the Kings had had some discussions with Virginia Beach officials about that city’s desires to build an arena and attract a major league team. […] A Kings spokesman on Thursday reissued the statement the team has been giving since the Virginia Beach rumors first surfaced months ago: ‘We have been contacted over the years by several cities and parties interested in the Kings organization. However, we are not going to comment on rumors regarding relocation of the franchise. Our sole focus over the last several months has been to improve the team. . . .The future of the Kings franchise is very bright as ownership has made a strong financial investment in the organization by adding nearly $135 million in potential future player payroll over the past two off-seasons.'”